THE CITY

THE CITY; Men's Shelter Suit Rejected by Judge

Published: March 24, 1982

A class-action suit that had sought to close the city's shelter for homeless men on Wards Island has been dismissed in Federal District Court in Manhattan.

In a 30-page decision, Judge Robert W. Sweet wrote that the plaintiffs had failed to prove that the homeless men had posed a danger to patients at the Manhattan Children's Psychiatric Center or had interfered with their treatment.

The suit had been brought last October by a state-appointed advocacy board for the patients and the parents of some patients. The center is a few yards from the shelter, which now takes in more than 600 men nightly.

In his opinion, issued on Monday, Judge Sweet also wrote that the state and city had taken action to prevent further incidents, described in court submissions, of harassment and intimidating behavior by homeless men wandering onto the center's grounds.